So reading the promotional material they state you can be an entrepreneur... does this apply to the skill based careers like sculpting and stuff? Because I seem to remember we would be able to buy community lots and make money off of them (other than the way it's already done in the base game).
Can we? How does the money making work, you just cash in and have employees? Or is it all a scam?

Skill-based careers, yes, you can register as self-employed at the court house and then you get raises and the like based on how much money you make selling your product.

I'm not sure what you're asking about having employees. No, you can not have employees. I don't think investing in any of the businesses in town are different from before but I'll let someone else who knows more than me about that answer that one.

Edit: In other words, this is not like OFB, if that's what you are hoping for. There is no opening a store of your own.

You can invest in even more lots than you could before, plus now you can "upgrade" certain lots, like the gym, through Build/Buy mode and get more money from them. You can "fire" current employees, but you cannot seem to "hire" anyone in specific. You can re-name lots, like you could before as well. Still this is all done in a third person sort of way. It is NOT OFB, it's more like mini-games and challenges. Which I actually prefer because running the businesses in OFB was so full of borkage that I found it very frustrating. I especially hated the Bakery....

of course the real question is WHY someone would want to run a small business or shop? But then, in the Sims, you really could not lose your shirt doing it, as is the case in real life.

Of course, maybe eventually we will see something like OFB for Sims 3, where your sims can buy product at a discount off the retail price and make money selling it for the retail price. But if it were to be a truly realistic operation, SimMart would open up down the street and sell the same items for LESS thant the discounted price you pay!

Another thing about the consignement store. Has anyone noticed that you sell stuff through the store for MORE than its market price, but buy it for LESS. Great business model: buy high, sell low!

The other way in which your sims can be entrepreneurs in Amb is by selling through the Consignment Store. There's a skill associated with it, with challenges, so the more you do it, the faster your stuff sells and the more money you get. It can be highly profitable, even without taking advantage of the exploit tj mentioned

Very true my 2 sims are making a mint that way one is a gardener and sells produce the other sells nectar. Oh yay, I forgot their teenage son is an inventor and he sells his stuff as well.